Chapter 1

Chapter 1

“In the end, the winner will always be Lee Su-hyeok.”

‘Our Hyeok’, ‘Light Su-hyeok’, ‘Great Su-hyeok’, ‘King Su-hyeok’, etc... Su-hyeok had many embarrassing nicknames, all meant to praise his brilliant achievements and contributions.

Earth, Murim, Runeterra, Elfrado, Tucan... people from all sorts of worlds gathered at the tower. Among the players from Earth, who were notably less capable, was one outstanding individual.

– Lee Su-hyeok... is he a god?! Is he a god?! Is he a god...?

– Mom, I want to be Lee Su-hyeok when I grow up. Mom, I want to be Lee Su-hyeok when I grow up. Mom, I want to be Lee Su-hyeok when I grow up...

– He tore the competition apart!

– What an unimaginable being!!

– (Sound of someone taking off their underwear and screaming).

– Earth is something else.

– Calm down with that nonsense. It’s just Lee Su-hyeok who’s awesome.

– Still, his followers are no joke. The members of Blue Eyes are on an entirely different level.

Su-hyeok had never lost in the interworld competition. He was the strongest player and the undefeated legend of Blue Eyes. Unfortunately, that legend was fading along with the rest of Blue Eyes.

“I think I’m going to die...” Su-hyeok muttered beneath his half-broken mask as he leaned against the wall. How many spears and knives were sticking out of his body? He’d lost so much blood that it was hard for him to stay awake.

‘These bastards...’ He looked around and saw corpses lying on the ground. Most were the corpses of his enemies, but some were the lifeless bodies of the Blue Eyes Guild’s members. They were the people who’d climbed the tower with him and some of the few he could call ‘friends’.

‘You guys should have escaped when I told you to. Why did you have to be so stubborn?’ Su-hyeok called out their names inwardly, one by one.

‘MinJae...’ He saw a corpse that’d probably been hit by magic with a hole in his chest the size of a human head.

‘Suhun...?’ Another man had died with his eyes wide open in a kneeling position with both of his arms cut off.

Finally...

‘JiYeong...’ His gaze rested on the body of the man who’d stepped in front of him, took a flying sword for him, and died. Blood seeped out of the wound carved into his back.

“Did I ever tell you guys to die like this? You fools.” Three were dead, and four others were just barely clinging to life. Of the four, two didn’t look like they’d survive unless given immediate treatment.

‘Can I save them...??’ he asked himself as he glared from behind his mask at the culprits of the incident.

The Murim Alliance was, as the name suggested, a large alliance of Murim players. Famous guilds such as the Namgung Clan, the Sacheon Clan, and Huashan were all part of it. Most players within the Murim Alliance kept their affiliations or identities unknown, though. Above all, the ones he hated the most among them were...

‘Blue Zone and Kim Ilsu.’ The Blue Zone Guild was a long-time ally of the Blue Eyes Guild and had participated in the hydra raid with them. Instead of helping, though, they’d ambushed Su-hyeok after the hydra poisoned him.

‘They were planning this from the beginning. No one will suspect anything if they say there was an accident during the hydra raid.’ Su-hyeok glanced back at the wall he had his back to. The solid black scales of the 8th-floor dungeon’s ‘Poison Dragon Hydra’ made a good resting place.

He was still surprised he’d been able to break through its scales. It was a common belief that the monster was impossible to raid, and he’d only defeated it through great effort and the assistance of the Blue Eyes Guild.

If he managed to live and leave the dungeon, everyone would say, “As expected of Lee Su-hyeok, the ‘Master of Lightning’.”

[‘Status: Poisoned’.]

[Natural healing is impossible.]

It didn’t seem likely that he’d make it out alive.

[Fatigue: 95]

[Fatigue level is excessively high.]

Many problems arose from high Fatigue, including reduced resistance to poison. Rather than rest, he needed immediate treatment. Given the circumstances, though, neither rest nor treatment seemed likely.

He looked down at the sword in his hand. More than half of it had melted in the hydra’s poison, and the other half was as worn as a battered saw. He sighed and focused his glare on the people surrounding him again. He saw expressions of shock, surprise, relief, and many others.

The Murim Alliance’s players turned to follow the four departing Blue Eyes players, but they were stopped when they heard an ominous voice.

“You guys have to deal with me first. You all know who’ll come out on top, right?” Of course, Su-hyeok was spouting nonsense. Dozens of spears and knives were sticking out of him, and the hydra’s poison continued to eat away at his body. On top of that, Kim Ilsu, Blue Zone, and the others were all top-tier players.

Even though their opponent was Lee Su-hyeok, there was no way he’d survive. For some reason, though, his fierce shout didn’t seem like a bluff.

BZZT—!

[The ‘Master of Lightning’ is manifesting.]

[Your Fatigue is high.]

[The duration of ‘Master of Lightning’ is limited.]

[Your Fatigue has increased to 96.]

Such things didn’t matter to Su-hyeok as he burned his remaining strength.

Flash—!

A single bolt of lightning fell from the sky. For some mysterious reason, it shone with black light and fell above Su-hyeok’s head. The size of the bolt was insignificant. Usually, the entire visible area around him was covered in electricity when he used the skill, but the area of the skill didn’t change its essence.

“Master of Lightning?!”

“He still has enough strength to use that?!”

“This crazy bastard...”

Su-hyeok took a step forward as the enemies retreated. “You guys aren’t going anywhere.” Back in his battle stance, he gripped the spear stuck in his abdomen and pulled it out through his torn muscles and guts. Along with the intense pain and bleeding, he saw his Fatigue rise to 97 in a new message window.

“This weapon should be enough.”

Clack—

Thud—

Su-hyeok removed his mask, revealing his fiery eyes. “Let’s see things through until the end.” Using the spear that had pierced him, he started his final fight.

WHOOM—!

* * *

His submerged consciousness gradually resurfaced. It felt as if his soul were floating around, and Su-hyeok recalled his final fight before he’d died.

‘Was it about half...?’ He’d believed it was too late to survive anyway, so he’d used all of his remaining Magic Power and Stamina in his final show of defiance. He’d managed to kill half of his opponents, and he’d even melted half of Kim Ilsu’s face. The man probably wouldn’t die, but he’d live with the scars for the rest of his life.

‘Should I be happy?’ Considering the state of his body, he believed he’d done well. Still, he couldn’t help but feel regretful. He at least wished he’d been able to take that bastard, Kim Ilsu, with him. If he hadn’t hit 100 Fatigue and fainted at the last moment, he would’ve had his wish, too.

‘Anyway, this is amazing. I never imagined I’d be able to continue thinking after death.’ Naturally, it was his first time experiencing death, so the sensation was new to him. He couldn’t see anything in the complete darkness. He hadn’t even experienced such darkness since he received optimized vision after becoming a player.

His other senses were similarly affected. He couldn’t hear or feel anything. It was like all five of his senses, which he’d always kept on high alert, were gone. Only one sense remained... His sense of self and thoughts floated somewhere.

‘Will I be stuck like this forever? Isn’t this, in a way, torture?’ Su-hyeok frowned as a strange stench filled his nose. It was like his nose was being buried in an old pile of garbage.

“I feel like vomiting... Huh?” Words unconsciously slipped out of his mouth. Along with that, he also realized he was frowning. That meant he had a body, but why couldn’t he see anything?

He hurriedly tried to get up as sensation slowly returned to his hands and feet. At that moment, the lid covering his head fell to the ground, and Su-hyeok was able to take a look at where he was.

Clank—

Thud—

He was in a heap of trash.

After climbing out of it, he muttered, “Am I in hell...?”

____